ESTERO, FL – The weather in Estero, deep in southwest Florida, has been hot, hot and hotter. Everyone down here was wondering just when we would get some cool relief. The day the Blades took the ice for their training camp, the weather changed. Cool breezes came down from the north. Is that a positive sign of their power to influence?
The Blades are entering their 13th (lucky?) season in the ECHL. Eight players returned to the team this year. Fan favorite, Ernie Hartlieb, decided to hang up his skates and retire. He will be working in the Financial Services industry.
The Everblades have an all-time record of 505-265-89 with a winning percentage of .640. They have qualified every year for post-season play since their inception in 1998.
The Florida Everblades are starting this season with new faces and not just those of the players. They have a new coach in Greg Poss and a new assistant coach, Brad Tapper. They both come with some pretty impressive records. Poss spent a number of years in Europe with both Swedish and German teams, leading them to very successful seasons and championships. Tapper is a newcomer, only in his second year of coaching. However, he brings experience as an NHL player to the table. Tapper spent three seasons on the ice with the Atlanta Thrashers.
Florida picked up a pair of wins in their exhibition/pre-season games against the Greenville Road Warriors. The team moved to Greenville (South Carolina) this year after relocating from (Johnstown) Pennsylvania. They operated there as the Chiefs for the past 22 years. Greenville has not had a hockey team since the 2005-06 season when they supported the Greenville Grrrowl. The Grrrowl were in Greenville from 1998-2006 and won the coveted Kelly Cup in 2002.
FRIDAY – October 8th : FLORIDA – 6 / GREENVILLE – 5
The first game was somewhat wild and scattered, but fun to watch. Most of the action took place in the third period when the teams combined to score five goals. Vlady Nikiforov, a Blade newcomer, scored the game winner at 15:21. Six total Blades scored that night. Besides Nikiforov were: Mike McKenzie (scoring 3 pts on the night), Bobby Raymond, Trevor Hendrix, Mitch Fadden, and Alex Imbeault.
Tonight’s game looked more like a scrimmage. The play was strong and aggressive. Lines were switched up and new techniques were tried to see what worked and what didn’t. The final score was in their favor. Brian Markowicz tallied the win in goal for the Blades.
SATURDAY – October 9th : FLORIDA – 4 / GREENVILLE – 2
The Blades were up at one time 4-0 before the Warriors put a pair up on the scoreboard. Florida was stronger on their play tonight; looking much more organized and focused. They were better at controlling the puck but still passed it around a little too much.
The strongest line on the ice was that of Alexandre Imbeault, Evengy Timkin and Francis Lemieux. Imbeault had 2 goals, 1 assist; Timkin had 1 goal, 2 assists; Lemieux has 2 assists – giving this line 8 points for the night. Markowicz looked even better in goal tonight as he stopped 36 of 38 shots from Greenville.
It is now up to the coaching staff to shave off the extras and make out the final roster prior to opening night on Friday October 15th. Home opening weekend, The Florida Everblades will host fierce division rivals the Gwinnett Gladiators.
Contact the writer: sweatherhead@prohockeynews.com
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